Giant hen-shaped chicken coop set to be built at Lake District arts centre

A playful chicken coop cloaked with timber shingles is set to be built at the Grizedale Arts centre in the Lake District, UK.

Named Heir and a Spare, the hen-shaped structure by writer Phineas Harper, cabinet maker Jos Geczy and graphic designer Rosa Nussbaum was recently named winner of a design competition held by the arts centre.

Intended as a new landmark for the Grizedale Arts centre in Cumbria, the coop was designed to be big enough for 12 chickens and fully mobile.

"Most foul enclosures of that size are built to be static so from the start the main design challenge was how to make a structure which could be easily relocated with enough room for a substantial flock of hens," Harper told Dezeen.

The trio drew on agricultural wheelbarrows – integrating a large rubber tyre at the enclosure's front and designing a barrow-shaped structure that will enable the structure to move.

"We're going with a thick rubber tyre so they'll be able to wheel the coop around their land even in soggy mud," Harper explained.

Raised on a red steel frame, the structure will be clad entirely with timber shingles that resemble the feathers of a hen. Playful details include a red-coloured ceramic finial reminiscent of a chicken's comb that will crown the structure.

"We were excited about using a mix of shingles influenced by the work of Wycliffe Stucthbury to evoke the mottled feathery patterns of chicken plumage," Harper said.

"From there it wasn't long before the idea of making the entire coop evoke the plump body and crown-like red comb of a healthy hen emerged."

Two large openings, which will each be complete with polycarbonate vents for daylight and air circulation, will give access to the enclosure.

Within the 1.1-square-metre coop four cork-insulated nesting boxes will enable egg collection via a letterbox hatch at the rear.

Additionally, a 5-metre-wide geodesic dome will serve as a secondary structure sitting over the coop.

The project will be funded by the Coronation Orchard Fund, a £2.5 million community fund commemorating the coronation of King Charles III.

Other recent developments at the Grizedale Arts include a cold food store designed by Hayatsu Architects that features a wooden frame covered with decorative Japanese Shikkui-style plaster.

Elsewhere, RAD+ar hid a bamboo chicken coop under an artificial hill in Jakarta and 2m26 used traditional Japanese carpentry to create a chicken coop in Kyoto.

The model photography is courtesy of Phineas Harper. 

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